


Easier Than Words

by Pixial



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Jesse deserves all the nice things, Language of Flowers, M/M, Secret Admirer, Target Practice Secret Santa 2019, Unrepentant Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:36:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21936328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pixial/pseuds/Pixial
Summary: Someone's been leaving gifts for Jesse. With romantic floral notes. Surely it can't be a secret admirer.
Relationships: Jesse McCree/Hanzo Shimada
Comments: 13
Kudos: 154





	Easier Than Words

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WhoGeek](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoGeek/gifts).

> This was written for the ever lovely AgentLadyHawkeye for the TP Discord Secret Santa. I hope you enjoy it!

It started, as many things did, with a cup of coffee.

Or to be more accurate, before Jesse’s daily cup. He opened the cabinet with his name and in place of his usual basic ground brew was a box of high dollar dark roast. The kind that Jesse had dreamed of while on the run. 

_I saw this and thought of you. I find I am often thinking of you_, read the sticky note attached to it. Underneath was a sketch of a flower-- a daffodil? It was a good sketch, too. It was simple ink, but Jesse fancied he could almost smell the thing.

Jesse pulled the box and note out with a bemused frown. There was no name.

“Did any of y’all do this?” he asked the dining hall at large.

“Do what?” asked Angela, in the midst of fixing her own dark-as-night brew. Jesse held up the box and note. She merely shrugged. 

Lucio took the note from Jesse. “No name,” he commented. “Nice flower, though.”

“Maybe it’s a secret admirer,” suggested Lena from her spot by the toaster oven. Jesse rolled his eyes.

“Not likely,” he replied. “A joke maybe, but I ain’t saying no to free coffee.” With that, he set to making a cup, sighing rapturously as the heavenly scent rose into the air.

As he took his first sip, Hanzo shuffled into the room. Jesse raised his cup in greeting and was pleasantly surprised when he got a small smile in return-- morning Hanzo was _not_ a smiley Hanzo. 

Good coffee and a smile from his favorite archer? The day was starting out pretty damned good. Apparently someone somewhere liked him!

The note faded to the back of Jesse's mind during the day. After all, it was a one-off thing. Something nice, but he genuinely didn't think it'd be a _thing_ at all. Not for lil ol' him.

Which is why he was more than shocked to discover another little note taped to a brand new set of targets and a box of ammunition on his bench in the firing range the next day. And not just any targets, but targets done up to look like those creepy dolls with the giant eyes and impossible physiques and way too mature fashions that for some reason every little girl he'd even known loved. The damned things gave him nightmares.

"What the fuck?" he asked, tilting his hat back as he pointed at the gifts. Hanzo looked over from where he was assembling Stormbow and shrugged.

"What does the note say?" he said as calmly as you please, though Jesse could've sworn there was a smirk there. Alright fine, Jesse's hatred of the little bits of sexualized plastic wasn't exactly a secret, and maybe it was a _bit_ funny, but still!

Jesse shook his head and picked up the pink paper. _"If this brings you any joy, I will be thankful for you have brought so much joy into my life,"_ he read aloud. "And it's got another flower. A carnation?"

Hanzo hummed. "Will you use them?"

"Fuck yeah I'm gonna use them. 'S gonna be cathartic as hell. I just can't figure out who'd go through that kinda trouble for me."

"Maybe it as Lena said, a secret admirer?"

Jesse shook his head. "Nah. No way. Not for me. But I ain't lookin' a gift horse in the mouth." He set the first target on the stand and loaded Peacekeeper. Weird or not, this was going to be fun.

++++++++

Despite Jesse's assertions that he in no way, shape, or form had a secret admirer, little notes and gifts popped up constantly throughout the week. Each was in the same precise handwriting followed by another sketch of a flower. Lavender, sweet pea, _roses_. 

_Though the nights are dark, I cannot hate them for the light you bring. May this lift you as you have lifted me,_ said one attached to a tray with his favorite breakfast foods and a bottle of aspirin after a night of too many nightmares, too much alcohol, and far too little sleep.

Another was carefully pinned to a silken, midnight blue scarf with a silver sheen. _This is but a pale imitation of the stars I see in your eyes. Even if I could pluck them from the very heavens, I could never hope to equal the beauty I see._

_You deserve all the luxuries of this world and more, and were it in my power, you'd never want for anything. May this find you well_, claimed another, stuck to a jewelry box. Inside was a bolo tie that Jesse would've bet hard money on was real gold inlaid with a jet stone. It was the sort of thing his Pa had worn for special occasions, that he'd promised to give Jesse someday when he was older, before his childhood went tits up, and just that small comparison created a lump in his throat.

He was studying this last note as Genji walked into the common room and plopped down on the couch beside him. "Hana tells me you've got a little puzzle on your hands," he said.

Jesse handed him the note and the bolo. "Yeah. 'Secret admirer,' can you believe it?"

"What's hard to believe about it? It is not impossible that someone would find you attractive." Genji pulled the note up to read it. "Statistically--"

He froze.

"Genji?" Jesse went on alert. "Genji what is it?"

Genji was silent for a long minute, staring at the scrap of paper. And then he relaxed. Or at least attempted to appear relaxed. "It is nothing. I just remembered a task I left undone. Forgive me." He practically threw the gift back at Jesse and fled.

Jesse was left staring after him, more confused than before. "What the ever lovin' fuck..."

++++++

Whatever the world thought of Jesse McCree-- or more accurately what he led it to believe-- he was not a stupid man. And he'd had enough regarding this "secret admirer" nonsense. One did not survive in the cut-throat underworld of black ops and bounty hunting on luck alone, and it was past time he put his training to use.

He gathered the notes and placed them out on his desk. He _would_ figure this out.

First things first: The gifts themselves. For the most part, Jesse had made no secrets of what he liked-- or didn't like in the case of the targets. The gifts were just personal enough to show that someone had been paying attention. They would not be much help.

Second: The notes. The handwriting was strong, clean. Almost calligraphic. Someone with an attention to detail wrote them. And the flowers themselves all had to do with affection and romance. Which was sweet, but Jesse wished they'd just tell him to his face.

Third: Opportunity. The gifts could only be left by someone with access to the base, which limited his suspect pool to his fellow agents. And that pool was limited further based on his knowledge of his friends. Reinhardt, for example, had eyes only for Ana. Torbjorn was married, and Angie was as gay as a lark in spring. And so forth. Jesse crossed out most of the names on the list until he was left with a single name.

_Hanzo Shimada._

On the one hand, it explained Genji's strange reaction to the note. And to be honest, Hanzo made sense. His attention to detail was legendary, and he was one of the few people who knew Jesse well enough to leave gifts and not get caught. One the other… The thought that it might be Hanzo made Jesse's heart twist with hope so painfully bright that there was no way he could be that lucky. There was no fucking way Hanzo would ever hold the kind of affection those flowers promised for _him._

But he had to know for sure. And the only way to do that was to ask, which could be a significant disaster. Hanzo was his best friend, and this was likely to ruin that. Still, he stood from the desk, packed the notes carefully into his breast pocket, and--

"Agents McCree, Shimada H., Pharah, Lúcio, Mercy, and Reinhardt please report to Hanger 3 for emergency deployment."

And he'll have to catch Hanzo after whatever this new bullshit was about. Jesse was professional enough to put this on the back burner in order to keep the mission running smoothly.

++++++

The mission did not run smoothly.

Winston had gotten a frantic distress call regarding an anti-omnic cell and some high grade EMP explosives. What Winston had not gotten were any details regarding the fact that there was a veritable army waiting to defend the bomb on its way into an omnic-heavy neighborhood in Chicago. 

They'd managed to neutralize the bomb, but only after a grueling battle stretching for hours. Jesse's hat was the first casualty-- a stray bullet sent it flying from his head early in the fight, and he found it far more prudent to shoot back than to recollect it.

From that point, it was a blur of shooting and ducking. Jesse would never be able to quite recall all of the details of the fight. He took a concussive blast straight off a roof, and the next thing he knew, he was sitting in Gibraltar's medbay with more aches than an octogenarian at a roller derby.

He opened his eyes and glanced about the room. His hat was sitting on the bedside table, an aloe plant-- a _real_ one this time-- nestled inside its brim. And sitting in the chair by the window was a dozing Hanzo. He looked stern, even in sleep, and Jesse found himself wishing he could smooth the lines etched into his brow.

Jesse's heart rose to his throat; no way around it now. He had to know if he'd gotten his hopes up for nothing. He coughed and Hanzo stirred. He blinked blearily before catching sight of Jesse, awake and looking straight at him.

"Forgive me," he said. "I had meant to… That is…"

"You were gonna leave this like the notes?" Jesse asked gently.

Hanzo's guilty flush answered for him. 

"Darlin' I cannot _tell_ you how pleased as punch I am that it's you-- Lord knows I've had a thing for you for _months_\-- but why didn't you just _talk_ to me?"

Hanzo sunk in the chair, ducking his head almost too fast for Jesse to catch a small smile that made his heart flutter in his chest.

"I am not… Good with words. Aloud," Hanzo explained, embarrassment clear. "But I've always enjoyed floral arrangements, speaking volumes without words. It seemed… Romantic."

Jesse felt a silly grin stretch on his face. "Romantic?"

"I take it romance is not your taste?"

"Nah, sugar. I feel flattered and giddy and honestly the fact you thought of me at all is enough to get me singin' and dancin'."

Hanzo's flush spread to his ears. "Do not do anything that will get me kicked out of medbay."

Jesse raised his hand as a pledge. "No, sir. No pissin' off the doc, sir."

Hanzo snorted and scooted the chair closer. Jesse wasted no time in grabbing his hand, grin growing wider as Hanzo gripped him back. 

"Words are rough, huh?"

"Gifts are easier," Hanzo admitted.

"Well as perfect as those gifts were, I can think of one thing that might be even easier," Jesse said, "but you're gonna have to lean in."

Hanzo rolled his eyes but did as requested, and Jesse moved to meet him as far as his battered body would allow. And as they kissed, Jesse thought that yeah, Hanzo definitely liked him. And he liked Hanzo too.

The kiss said it loud and clear.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted noodle dragons so bad but couldn't fit them in the way I wanted. So please know that they are Hanzo's delivery children.


End file.
